Bay Area Blogger Meet and Sweat Event

For several months, I’d been toying with the idea of hosting a “get-together” for a bunch of bloggers and was never quite sure how I wanted it to play out. Well, this past weekend I decided to combine my love of blogging and fitness to create a little something called the “Bay Area Blogger Meet and Sweat,” and it was absolutely perfect.

Before Photo of Bay Area Blogger Meet and Sweat via A Lady Goes WestTake a look at this happy group of ladies before their killer workout took place.

On Saturday mid-afternoon, I invited a group of ladies from San Francisco and the East Bay area to join me for a social hour and short workout at Orangetheory Fitness in downtown Walnut Creek, where I’m a coach.

Bringing together blogging ladies in the East Bay

While most of the ladies I had met at various blogger events in San Francisco before, a few were new to me. It was so nice to finally make face-to-face connections with some new ladies, and we all became fast friends. The attendees included bloggers who focus on fashion, fitness, lifestyle and food and some who do a little bit of everything.

The ladies present included the fabulous Caity, Jill, Cassandra, Sarah, Dani, Hayley, Melissa, Julianne, Daisy, Crystal, Kristen, Brandy and Stacey. And because most blogger events take place in downtown San Francisco, a few of the ladies who live closer to me were super happy to have something to do in our neck of the woods. 

Ashley at Bay Area Blogger Meet and Sweat tableI was looking forward to this event for weeks, and I couldn’t stop smiling the whole time.

When the ladies arrived, they signed a waiver for the workout and also got strapped up with a heart-rate monitor. From there, they grabbed a gift bag full of fun loot and began to mix and mingle. We had the perfectly sized crowd of just about 15 bloggers total, and it’s a good thing there weren’t more people, because two hours just didn’t seem like enough time to hang out and fit in the “sweat” portion of the day.

For the first hour, we took pictures, chatted, exchanged business cards, and then I gave them the download on what to expect from the workout.

Selfie at Bay Area Blogger Meet and Sweat via A Lady Goes WestAfter taking a serious photo, we had to take a not-so-serious one. Or wait, is this one serious too?

Coaching the ladies into the Orange Zone

I took them through about half of a typical Orangetheory class, with about 13 minutes on the treadmill and about 13 minutes on the rower and weight-room floor, with a warm-up and a cool-down and a couple of breaks mixed in, clocking in at around 40 minutes total. It was all but one blogger’s first time trying Orangetheory, and I loved seeing their reactions. They really pushed themselves! And it didn’t hurt that I selected a focus of “power” for the workout, so there was definitely some jumping, sprinting and all-out efforts required of them all.

Bay Area Blogger Meet and Sweat workout via A Lady Goes WestBecause the group was small enough to keep on one side, I was able to coach each person individually to hit their target zones. Good times!

After the workout, we gave high-fives, posed for some after-photos, enjoyed treats, chatted and went on our merry way. It was such a good time, and as I said, went by far too fast!

These types of blogger meet-ups are super important. I always feel re-energized about the efforts I put into this blog, when I get the chance to share stories with other people who do the same thing as I do. 

Of course, our memories will live on, and there was plenty of social media-ing to be done. Check out some of the Instagram posts using our hashtag #BayAreaBloggerMeetandSweat from Caity, Kristen, Jill, Brandy, Hayley, Dani, Daisy, Crystal, Me and Sarah. And check out the blog event recaps from CassieHayley, Caity, Dani and Crystal. Good stuff!

After Photo Bay Area Blogger Meet and Sweat via A Lady Goes WestHere’s a look at a strong group of ladies after their killer workout was complete.

Filling the gift bags with amazing goodies

When planning this event, I reached out to some of my favorite brands to see if they would be interested in providing some treats and gifts for my blogger friends. And not only were they interested, they all went above and beyond. Just check out the line-up …

Bay Area Blogger Meet and Sweat Gift Bags via A Lady Goes WestFuel, recovery, treats and more. What a pretty display, if I do say so myself.

In the weeks leading up to the event, every time I would get a delivery, I was consistently shocked at how much was sent. We needed bigger gift bags!

  • Thank you so much to Fabletics, who provided my outfit, as well as gift bags, special towels, discount cards, journals, pens and lip balm for everyone. As a Fabletics Master, I’m responsible for sharing my love of wellness and fitness in my community, and this event was a perfect way to do that.
  • Thank you to Naked Juice, who totally spoiled us with tons of delicious fresh juices and juice smoothies. We had enough for everyone to take a few flavors home with them too.
  • Thank you to Vega, for providing a big tub of delicious plant-based vegan Protein & Greens powder and shaker cups for every single lady.
  • Thank you to Muscle Milk, for providing 100-calorie protein shakes.
  • Thank you to Doughbies, for providing some freshly made cookies, which we devoured after the workout. (Available in San Francisco, you can get $5 off your order using ALADYGOESWEST as your promo code.)
  • Thank you to LUNA Bar, for providing tons of tasty gluten-free nutrition bars for everyone to snack on.
  • Thanks to Orangetheory Fitness Walnut Creek, for letting me host my event.
  • Thank you to my husband, Dave, who not only helped me tote all of the gift bags and treats around downtown Walnut Creek and help me set up, but who also took a bunch of photos during the event. As usual, he was a champ.

And finally, thank you to all the lovely ladies who showed up and worked out. You gals were total rockstars, and I truly enjoyed spending time together.

Bay Area Blogger Meet and Sweat ladies via A Lady Goes WestSome new friends and old friends, hanging out on a fun Saturday in Walnut Creek.

As I told the group of ladies on Saturday, this is just the first of these “Bay Area Blogger Meet and Sweat” events, because I had so much fun putting it together and hosting it, that I’m definitely going to do another one soon. Until next time …

Fitness, new friends + fun. Check out the #BayAreaBloggerMeetandSweat event hosted at #Orangetheory Click To Tweet

Questions of the day

Bloggers, have you ever been to a meet-up?

When is the last time you tried something new?

P.S. If you’re a blogger in Northern California, make sure you leave your email below, so I can let you know when I host another event!

 

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94 Comments

  1. SO much fun, Ashley! I’ve been thinking about searching for some SW Florida bloggers and hosting a get together. I loved spending time with fellow bloggers in Chicago and would love to do the same here.

  2. What a great idea!!! So wish I lived closer, I’d love to be a part of something like that 🙂 You did a great job putting it all together and I’m sure the girls appreciated it and had a wonderful time! Congrats on it being a success!!

  3. Girl! This is amazing and I LOVE that you put something like this together! I don’t have too many bloggers in my immediate area, but I’ve been to a handful of blogger meetups and they’re always so much fun. It’s nice to hang out with a group of like minded people 🙂

    1. Hi Amanda! It was SO fun to put together! And yes, we have a big group in the Bay Area, so it was easy to get a handful together. Maybe we’ll meet one day! 🙂

  4. This sounds like so much fun! Moving out to Denver from Chicago, I’ve had to reach out to folks via email and ended up meeting a great group of gals. Though it’s interesting that the fashion blogger crowd is a lot more social than the fitness and lifestyle out here (at least from my experience, ha!) I’ll have to follow in your foot steps and make my own meet up! I may be in touch to ask for some tips (especially with Orange Theory being down the street from me. 🙂 )

    1. Hi Jessica! Yes, it was easy for me to find a place to host, since I already coach at OTF. And yes, the fashion bloggers are WAY more social around here too. 🙂 hehhee!

  5. It looks like you guys had an amazing time! Would love to attend sometime!

    Do you have a list of your favorite workout spots in SF? I use Classpass and would love to find some new workouts!

    1. YES! I wrote about many on the Fitness + Workouts page on the blog. I like Pop Physique, Barry’s Bootcamp, Pure Barre, Cardio Barre to name a few!

  6. YEAH! I am always looking for more Bay Area bloggers to follow. Thank you for the introduction to these lovely ladies.

  7. I had so much fun, Ashley! Thank you again for making it such a wonderful experience for us!

    I’m definitely going to check into the Orange Theory in Dublin and see if I can get Brandon to go try it out with me. I’m so curious about my heart rate now! That, and I really loved the workout. I was sore in all the right places. 🙂

    I kind of want to plan something now too but it would have to food related, obviously. 😉 It would be nice to treat you after all you did for us!

    1. YES, go to OTF Dublin and take Becky’s class. She’s a friend of mine and a GREAT trainer!! She’s soo awesome — those classes are packed too. And YES for a food event. I like to eat.

  8. Thank you again for the time and effort you put into hosting this fabulous event Ashley!! It was such a great afternoon, with the perfect balance of mingling, treats, and fitness! With you’re on point instruction and this great group of ladies, I can’t wait for the next one <3

  9. Okay! LOVE LOVE LOVE that you set out to host a blogger meet up and BAM – YOU DID IT!!! 🙂 I wish I lived close by… However, I wonder if you would have invited me 😉

  10. I’d love to join in on the next meetup! There’s an Orangetheory opening near my office in Redwood City, I’m super excited to try it out!

  11. I just joined the FB group and will definitely look out for future events like this…it looks awesome! You’re clearly a great planner to put this together and get all the sponsors – looking forward to the next one. And I’m sure we’ll meet someday soon!

  12. that’s so so cool that you were able to host the meetup at OTF AND workout with everyone! perfect blogger activity 🙂 (i just typed blooger LOL).
    also LOVE the goodie bags! so sweet of the brands to provide so much awesome stuff!

  13. Hi! Know I’m super late on this but I’m new to the Bay Area and blog over at The Path To Mecca. Would love to know if you ever throw another meet-up. Also, I love OTF! I’ve been a fan since 2012 and would go constantly when I lived in Minneapolis. I’m thrilled they have locations here.

      1. That sounds great! I’d absolutely love that — and in the meantime, I need to get over to the East Bay for an OTF class. I passed the studio last weekend on my way to spin and was so excited just looking at it. 🙂

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